Government signs off CPO process for £90m Congleton link road

The Department for Transport has given Cheshire East Council the green light to start construction of the £90m A536 Congleton Link Road by signing off compulsory purchase and side road orders.

The 5.5km highway will link the A534 Sandbach Road west of Congleton to the A536 Macclesfield Road, north of the town centre, and is designed to alleviate congestion across the area.

The proposals have been through a public enquiry since May last year, and the DfT has now signed off the compulsory purchase order powers and side road orders to allow Cheshire East to assemble the land for construction.

The project is currently out to tender, with the council receiving a number of fixed-price tenders in February this year. These will be assessed based on price and deliverability, with a winning contractor expected to be named later this year.

Following the approval of CPO powers by the DfT, a full business case will be submitted once a contractor has been chosen by Cheshire East’s cabinet. This will allow construction to begin in November this year, and the road is due to complete in late 2020.

Cheshire East added it would look to meet with local landowners to purchase land by agreement “if possible”, rather than using CPO powers.

Planning for the road has been ongoing since 2012, and the project will be funded via a combination of Local Growth Fund money, contributions by private developers, and Cheshire East council.

This will be made up of £45 Growth Fund Money, £23m from developers, and the remaining £22m from the council.

The road has been designed by Jacobs.